DP World to spend $415m developing fourth berth at London Gateway

DP World will begin work next month on a new £300m ($415m) fourth berth at its London Gateway logistics hub.

Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, group chairman and CEO of DP World, said: “As a central pillar of Thames Freeport, London Gateway’s new fourth berth will allow even more customers to benefit from world class ports and logistics, with unrivalled global connectivity, on the doorstep of Europe’s largest consumer market. DP World plans to be at the heart of Britain’s trading future and this investment shows that we have the ambition and the resources to boost growth, support businesses, create jobs and improve living standards.”

Rishi Sunak, Britain’s finance minister, commented: “Our new freeports will create national hubs of trade, innovation and commerce, and attract more investment to regenerate communities and level up the UK.”

In the first six months of 2021 London Gateway saw record throughput of 888,000 teu, a more than 23% increase on the previous best performance for the first half of a year. The new fourth berth will raise capacity by a third.

Along with the Port of Tilbury and Ford’s Dagenham plant DP World London Gateway will form Thames Freeport after being awarded freeport status by the government earlier this year, with the partners currently progressing the business case with a view to receiving formal accreditation. DP World Southampton has also been awarded freeport status as part of Solent Freeport.